As the only Malibu Team participant in the recent spearfishing tournament at Leo Carrillo, a Marine Life Protection Act supporter, and Point Dume diver since the early ’60s, I feel compelled to respond to the rhetoric.
The Chumash Indians had the right idea for Malibu: fishing only from shore or on paddleboards, with no scuba or boats. I usually spear one or two average size fish (better tasting, less accumulated pollution) from shore when I want seafood. Compare this with a commercial fishing boat dropping 20 to 30 baited hooks on the same reef, seven days a week, 365 days a year! Why aren’t there more fish? You do the math. Take a lesson from Northern California when all our abalone was eliminated here. Above San Francisco no scuba or commercial harvesting is allowed. The game is so plentiful, last month I captured my three abalone limit in one breath.
The way the MLPAs are set up is a joke. The “ecologists” ask the fishermen what areas we would like to fish. We tell them this is exactly what we want. Even when we have the statistics backing up our renewable and selective practices, big money and lopsided political appointees get their way every time. Just eliminate the commercial fish drain. Let the unrepresented little guy, if he/she has the desire, go out and get their fresh dinner.
Commercialization has ruined this country. Beef, dairy and fish farms, high in fat, have destroyed and polluted the earth. They are the main cause of heart disease and strokes. Commercial fish and dive boats pound the same reefs over and over again. To leave the smallest carbon footprint, Malibuites need more small organic fruit and veggie farms for our main sustenance and the ability to occasionally catch our local wild fish. Please don’t destroy the soul of Malibu.
Bill Ernst